Council

I recently had a chance to sit down for an interview with Doug, Pat, and Andy Reeves to discuss the band, their plans, and how they got the opportunity to play at Citi Field.

ANTHONY CANTIELLO, METSTALK.COM: Tell us a little about yourselves… Who is Council? When and how did you guys get started and how would you describe your sound?

DOUG REEVES: Council is made up of myself, my twin brother Pat, and my year younger brother, Andy.

We are farmers on our family farm and just looking to find a way out. It is a fruit and vegetable farm. We have everything from strawberries, sweet corn, peppers, squash, tomatoes, to gourmet peppers, pumpkins, gords and blueberries.

PAT REEVES: Such a tragic life we lead [Joking and referring to Doug’s answer]

DOUG: Our band was formed in the same manner as the way we write music and do anything else together, arguing. Pat picked up Andy’s guitar that wasn’t being used and decided to learn to play some chords. Andy didn’t like Pat using his guitar, so he decided he was going to learn to play guitar.

ANDY REEVES: And we’re all lucky I did.

DOUG: Pat would have to settle for the bass. However, he was quick to claim lead singer after losing out for guitarist.

PAT: And we’re lucky I did.

DOUG: I was never interested in either, I always liked the drums, so I just bought sticks and played on pillows till I could afford a set. Even though we all decided to play instruments, it wouldn’t be for some time before we would all agree to be in a band together. We had no other options anyway, but no one wanted to give in too quickly.

Whenever answering the question, “How would you describe your sound”, your inevitably going to fall short in some aspect. The simple answer is driving bass and drums with big melodic guitars.

METSTALK.COM: You’ll be playing at Citi Field on September 27th before the Mets take on the Cincinnati Reds. How did the band get the chance to play there and at what other venues and with what other bands have you played?

PAT: Well it’s really Lori Martini that gave us this chance. We met her at our Sullivan Hall show in March and realized very quickly we were all huge New York Mets fans. She proposed the idea of our band making a rock version of her song, “Believe.” [--Editor's Note: Mets fans may recognize that song as one of Justin Turner's walk-up songs.]

We thought it was a great idea and that got the ball rolling for us to be playing at Citi Field.

ANDY: We have played most of the club staples in New York City like Kenny’s Castaway and Sullivan Hall among others.

DOUG: We also played Trash bar in Brooklyn and The Annex. And we played a lot of shows in Hawaii including, the Pipeline Café, with The All American Rejects, The Kooks, The Toadies and The Presidents Of The United States.

METSTALK.COM: Okay, before we go any further, are any of you guys actually Mets fans? Is so, who are your favorite Mets players of all-time? And God help you if you reveal yourselves to be Yankees fans or worse — Phillies fans — coming to play Citi Field!

PAT, DOUG, & ANDY: Absolutely, we are Mets fans! They’ve been our favorite team in any sport since we were kids.

DOUG: My favorite Mets player of all time…I would say it’s a tie between Nolan Ryan and the 1986 New York Mets team. I just loved the whole team and probably couldn’t narrow it down.

PAT: For me it would have to be Gary Carter. Number 8. I started out as a catcher in baseball because of him and really loved watching him and his Mets teammates.

ANDY: Gary Carter and Nolan Ryan, yes… But without sounding too diplomatic, I think I can say truthfully all Mets players past, present, and future mean a lot to us.

METSTALK.COM: As a New York-based rock band, do you guys view being able to play at a major metropolitan area venue like the Mets’ Citi Field as a special opportunity?

PAT: Of course we do. We would be crazy not to. Not many bands get this kind of opportunity. Being from New York and lifelong Mets fans, this will be a very special night for us.

METSTALK.COM: Not to put any pressure on you guys, but since Citi Field opened in 2009, the stadium has hosted concerts by both Paul McCartney and Dave Matthews Band. Are you up to the challenge of being the next band to play there? Which songs will you be playing?

DOUG: When someone says, “Not to put any pressure on you,” usually that means there is a decent amount of pressure already. I was not aware that only two bands have played Citi Field since 2009. Having said that, yes our band is up to the challenge!

We will be playing, “Welcome The Change,” and “Believe.” It should be a high energy show.

ANDY: I think in some respects we play better with more people. The songs seem to translate better and we feed off the crowd.

METSTALK.COM: Most Mets fans are probably wondering this, so it might as well be asked… Why Citi Field and not Yankee Stadium? Have you been to both and which one do you prefer?

PAT: We chose Citi Field because if our relationship with Lori Martini and the New York Mets.

We wouldn’t be opposed to playing Yankee Stadium. It just worked out that we get to play our favorite teams stadium.

DOUG: We have been to Shea Stadium but because of our other occupation, farming, it makes it hard for us to take time off to go to either stadium. If I had to choose to play either one I would chose Citi Field everyday of the week and twice on Sunday.

METSTALK.COM: Besides being home to the Mets, Citi Field has quite the collection of culinary delights. Have you guys ever eaten there and what’s you favorite food at the stadium? If you haven’t, please allow me to recommend the BBQ ribs at the Blue Smoke stand!

ANDY: We have not been to the stadium so therefore we have not been lucky enough to taste the extraordinary food that is there. However, I will take your recommendation for BBQ ribs at Blue Smoke and definitely make sure to stop by and try them.

PAT: I do love ribs so I can guarantee I’ll be stopping by Blue Smoke.

METSTALK.COM: How can Mets fans — or anyone else who enjoys your Citi Field performance — listen to your music and find out about your upcoming shows?

DOUG: You can find us online at CouncilBand.com, follow us on our Facebook page, and at ReverbNation.com.

METSTALK.COM: Thanks for taking the time out to talk to Mets Talk today. What’s on the horizon for Council that fans can look forward to? Anything else you’d like to add?

PAT: We remade the song “Lithium” for a 20 year anniversary tribute album coming out in late September. It will span 5 continents and we are the only American band on the album, which is very humbling.

ANDY: We also have new songs we are finishing up in preparation to record this fall.

PAT: Our next goal for our band is to obtain a major label recording contract.

DOUG: Major MAJOR recording contract!

PAT: Hopefully drop farmer from our resume, at least temporarily. Thank you for the interview, it’s been a pleasure.

DOUG, ANDY: Yes, thank you very much.

Come see Council perform in a pre-game concert on Tuesday, September 27th at Citi Field. Arrive early before the Mets take on the visiting Cincinnati Reds to catch the performance.

Its usually a tricky question to answer, especially if the person asking hasn’t lived in New York themselves.

Or I just show them this:

That right there is why I LOVE NEW YORK so much. :)

That includes the Irish rock band’s show at the New Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey, which I happened to have tickets to see with my U2-loving family.

So much for my big summer concert plans.

A dramatization of how Bono might have injured his Irish back.

I really was looking forward to seeing U2 perform at the brand new football stadium in July, too.

And so far, all that us ticket holders have been told is that the tour will be rescheduled in 2011… sometime. Gee, I sure hope I’m free whenever that is…

Overall the show was pretty good, a lot of funny jokes from host Aziz Ansari (“Parks and Rec”) and some typical MTV-ish moments, like Sandra Bullock’s kiss with Scarlett Johansson, but the real moment of the night was Tom Cruise’s attempt at remaining relevant.

He was back as his alter-ego Les Grossman, dancing around the stage like a lunatic, and then eventually with Jennifer Lopez for some reason.

Man, Tom Cruise has really let himself go…

Oh well, Katie Holmes didn’t seem to mind. She really enjoyed Tom’s moves…

Check out this video from the NYU Inter-Residence Hall Council of Lady Gaga singing and playing piano  at the NYU Ultraviolet Talent Show. She ended up coming in third place.

The first song is called Captivated and the second one is Electric Kiss.

The best part is that one of the judges said she thought Lady Gaga would be the next Norah Jones. Perhaps you could see why she said that, but uh, no, not exactly Norah Jones…

In New York, concrete jungle where things are made of… there’s nothing you can’t do… Now you’re in New York… these streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you…